Cyber attacks hit Russia, Ukraine as truce ends

Russia reported a 'massive cyberattack' on its emergency warnings app on Monday, hours after Ukraine claimed its air raid alert system was compromised. The attack occurred as the longest truce of the war, covering Ukraine's eastern Kherson region, ended.

Moscow's emergencies ministry stated that hackers posted 'false information' on the app, which is used to warn the public of incoming drone attacks and other threats. Ukraine's Center for Strategic Communications, SPRAVDI, blamed Russia for the hack it suffered.

The truce, which lasted from October 27 to November 1, was brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump and allowed a humanitarian mission to the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky. Ukraine's Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, called the temporary truce 'an important step in our joint humanitarian efforts.'

US-mediated talks between Russia and Ukraine are set to resume this month, having been frozen since the United States and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran in February. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country would stop hitting Russian oil refineries if Washington provided Kyiv with powerful Patriot interceptor missiles.

Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022 has caused widespread destruction in eastern and southern Ukraine, resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths and forcing millions to flee. Residents in Kherson described the ceasefire as a 'breath of fresh air,' with one gardener saying they used the time to prepare for winter.

Russian forces reportedly used the truce to amass troops, transport ammunition, and gather intelligence on Ukrainian positions using drones. Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine exchanged strikes elsewhere, with Russia claiming a drone struck an 'industrial enterprise' east of Moscow and Ukraine reporting an attack on the Kstovo oil refinery.